U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0164412 describes a system for 3D-navigation for motor vehicles, which includes an arrangement combining a first motor vehicle and an environment scanner to generate a three-dimensional image of an environment of the first motor vehicle or at least a part of the environment of the first motor vehicle, as well as at least one second motor vehicle and a communications connection between the first motor vehicle and the second motor vehicle for transmitting to the second motor vehicle the three-dimensional image of the environment around the first motor vehicle or at least a part of the environment around the first motor vehicle.
European Published Patent Application No. 0 875 730 and German Published Patent Application No. 698 15 940 describe a map information display device for use in a vehicle navigation device having a data conversion device for recording points of map data according to a map from a viewpoint through a viewing line that originates from the viewpoint and has an angle of depression with respect to the plane of the map, and for perspectively projecting the points of the map data onto a viewing plane, which is fixed perpendicular to the viewing line and is a predefined distance from the viewpoint in order to generate map display data. This produces a bird's eye view of a surrounding area. A navigation system having a bird's eye view of an environment is also described in French Published Patent Application No. 2 634 707 as well as the document “autoconnect 2005,” Vereinigte Motor-Verlage GmbH & Co. K G, Leuschnerstr. 1, 70174 Stuttgart, Germany, pages 18 and 21.